Street Murder
by Angie Child
Summary: Sequel to 'Kazuha's 1st Appearance', Heiji's stand-alone case. Heiji has just gotten out of the hospital, but he wasn't about to give up anything just because he was shot. But he had to be careful, or things can turn ugly. Please R&R! [File 5 Up and Ended
1. File 1 Back to School

**Author's Note: **I just love Heiji too much! :P After rereading 'Kazuha's 1st Appearance' for the umpteenth time, a thought came to me as to why not show what happened after that? So I started writing this! Bear in mind that this is going to be Heiji's stand-alone case!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the characters. All characters from Detective Conan are copyrighted (c) to Gosho Aoyama.

**File 1 – Back to School**

Hattori Heiji yawned, sitting behind his desk in the classroom. He was the only one there so far---he had arrived early to see his teacher, but the teacher had a sick leave, so he had no choice but to sit in his classroom and wait for classes to begin.

He had only got out from the hospital the night before. It had only been three nights since his last case, which involved him getting shot in the stomach accidentally. Even though he was fine (at least it seemed so from his energy after the shot), he was forced to stay in hospital for checkup until he was allowed to go home. His wound still hurt somehow, which was natural.

_No Kendo for a month...that doctor must be joking,_ he thought grudgingly. _I have a tournament next month, how can I NOT practice?_ "Oww..." He clutched his stomach, wincing. He could feel the bandages under his uniform.

It was the first time he was injured seriously in a case. It was sort of his fault---if he had not stopped Sakata Yusuku from killing himself, he wouldn't have been hurt. But it was better than watching Sakata kill himself. What he was most satisfied about was that his 'good luck charm' saved Kudo Shinichi---or Edogawa Conan, so to speak. Before that, he could not stop thinking about the nightmare: Kudo getting stabbed while chasing a crook. According to what he was told, Conan was stabbed from saving Mouri Ran, but the knife had hit the handcuff piece that was with the lucky charm. Kazuha had made it and gave to Heiji, but he lent it to Conan instead. He definitely did not want his nightmare to come true.

But how could he be sure that it was what he was supposed to be looking forward to?

Heiji dug a hand in his hair, frustrated. _Okay, no need to think too much there,_ he thought sternly. _Kudo is a lucky guy, he won't get into too much trouble. Besides, why should I care? It's HIM, after all._ He pushed all the thoughts out of his head and settled back in his chair, ready to fall asleep.

"HATTORI!"

His eyes popped open as a few of his classmates burst into the room. They ran up to him, patting him and firing him with questions and remarks in ecstatic. "We heard you were shot, is it true?" "Why didn't you die?" "Where is the wound?"

All this while, Heiji's stomach was killing him. "H-h-hey! I---"

"Get away from Heiji!"

Heiji blinked as they immediately jumped away from him. Tohyama Kazuha walked up to him, looking at the other boys in annoyance. "He's hurt, and if I didn't stop you, he's going to be sent into the hospital again!" she scolded sternly. "Really!" She shook her head, and then looked at Heiji. "And you, why don't you stay at home and rest? You only got out from the hospital last night!"

Heiji could hear snickers around him. Obviously, everyone in the class thought he and Kazuha made the perfect couple---after all, Kazuha was his childhood friend and they did a lot together. But Heiji personally did not see the connection---at least he didn't know he actually liked her.

"Too boring to stay at home," he replied, folding his arms. "Besides, the doctor didn't say I can't come to school. By the way, I'll be at the Kendo practice after school, so you don't have to wait for me."

"Kendo practice?! The doctor said no Kendo for a month, didn't you hear?!" Kazuha exclaimed.

"But we have a tournament next month!" Heiji argued.

"Your health is more important than a silly tournament!" Kazuha snapped into his face.

Heiji frowned. He always got annoyed when Kazuha tried to give him nonsense advices. "Is that true? During last year's tournament, you forced me to go to the tournament even though I had flu, because 'the tournament is more important than health', remember?"

Kazuha turned very red. "That was an exception! You were shot, and had to undergo three hours of operation just to extract the bullet!"

"Come on, Tohyama-chan, Hattori is best in Kendo, and he's got a strong body, he can do it," one of his classmates said, clapping Heiji on the back. Heiji winced slightly.

Kazuha was still determined. "I don't care. You could get hurt! I'm serious, Heiji!"

"All right, all right," Heiji said, annoyed. "I won't go for the practice. Are you happy now?"

Kazuha nodded. "Good! I'll wait for you at the front gates as usual, don't be late!" Heiji shrugged. But he had something else in his mind.

---

_Where is he?!_ Kazuha thought with irritation as she looked at her watch again.

It had been half an hour since school ended for the day, and she had already been there for twenty-five minutes. She felt suspicious.

"Hey, have you seen Heiji?" she asked a classmate of hers who was just walking out.

"Hattori-kun? I think I saw him lurking by the Kendo dojo," the girl replied. "Are you---" She stopped very fast when she saw Kazuha's vein throbbing. "Uh, I'll be going." She rushed off very fast, in hurry to get away from Kazuha.

---

"_Kote!_ (Wrist) One point win! Four to one, Hattori wins!"

"All right!" everyone cheered as Heiji took off his helmet, a victorious smile on his face. "You're still amazing, Hattori!"

"Of course I am," Heiji laughed merrily as he walked over to the bench and sat down on it. He pulled off the cloth from his head and let out a breath of relief. He did not realize how tiring Kendo practice was that way. His opponent had not tried to strike his body fortunately, but for some reason, his wound was aching.

"Are you okay, Heiji?" his friend asked, looking concerned. "I heard you were shot three days ago. Don't force yourself if you can't take it."

"I'm fine...of course I can take it," Heiji replied, stretching his arms. "It doesn't hurt at all." _Well, maybe a little,_ he thought with a tiny wince.

"If you say so. What about Kazuha-chan? Isn't she waiting for you? She will be really mad if she finds out you disobeyed her."

"Don't bother her, she's always like that. She doesn't even know I'm here!" he laughed.

"Hattori, you're up against Sawutaru!" someone called.

"Interesting!" Heiji said with a smile, getting up. When he was ready, he stepped forward to meet Sawutaru, who looked very determined.

"Just to let you know, I won't go light on you," Sawutaru warned.

"Okay," Heiji grinned.

"_Hajime!_"

Heiji started to charge towards Sawutaru. Suddenly, the dojo door flew open. "HEIJI!" Kazuha screeched.

He came to a quick stop, his eyes widened as he looked around to the door. "K-Kazuha?!"

"_Do!_" Hearing the shout, Heiji turned around. Sawutaru was coming towards him. He tried to dodge, but the sword hit his stomach as he did. A sharp pain struck through him.

Kazuha shrieked when Heiji fell onto the floor, clutching his stomach and his face twisting in pain. "HEIJI!"


	2. File 2 A Gruesome Murder

**WARNING**: Horrible sight at the end of file, make sure you have a strong stomach to read it.

**File 2 – A Gruesome Murder**

"He will be fine...he's lucky it didn't get any worse," the school nurse said as she replaced the roll of bandages in the first-aid kit, having finished treating Heiji. "Otherwise, he won't be able to even move. I suggest he takes plenty of rest and don't do anything for a while."

"Arigatou gozaimasu," Kazuha said, bowing as the nurse left the room. She turned to glare at Heiji, who was sitting up on the bed and clutching his stomach in pain. "You're lucky! If you aren't injured right now, I would have killed you!"

"If you hadn't barged in like that, I wouldn't have gotten hurt!" Heiji snapped. "You're very annoying!"

"Oh, I'm annoying, and you're an idiot! You promised to---"

"Hey, I didn't say I promised, I just said I won't go for practice, and I didn't mention what practice it is, so---"

"HATTORI HEIJI, YOU'RE HOPELESS!" Kazuha screamed, almost knocking Heiji off. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU! YOU'RE HURT AND PRETEND YOU ARE FINE WHEN YOU AREN'T! I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY I CARE SO MUCH ABOUT YOU OR EVEN LIKE YOU..."

The door flew open. Kazuha froze, her face turning very red as she realized what she had said. Heiji blinked for a while before turning to see who had entered. It was Sawutaru, already changed, and looking quite guilty.

"Konnichiwa, Hattori...um, are you okay?" he asked nervously.

Heiji nodded, swinging his feet over the side of the bed. "I'm okay, it just hurts a little. The nurse put some extra bandages because it was bleeding again."

"I-I'm very sorry about it, I didn't mean to hurt you!" Sawutaru apologized, bowing his head several times in embarrassment. "I mean, I didn't know you were hurt, otherwise I would have go light on you..."

"Hey, it's my fault, okay? Don't feel bad for yourself," Heiji told him firmly. Then he lit up, the usual grin on his face. "But wow, that was a good move! You have a bright future ahead, just practice more!"

Kazuha narrowed her eyes and sighed. She should have known that Heiji would not mind at all and always pretended as if nothing happened. "Okay, enough," she said, getting up. "It's time to go home, Heiji."

Heiji looked at her. "Oh, okay. Anyway, let's fight again another time, all right?" he said to Sawutaru with a wink, climbing off the bed. As soon as his feet touched the floor, he keeled over a little. "Ow, ow, ow..."

Kazuha rolled her eyes and sauntered up to help him. She put his arm around her shoulders and lifted him up on his feet. "Steady now." She momentarily glared at Sawutaru, who was snickering. _Why is everyone like this?_ she thought in annoyance as she led Heiji out.

---

"Okay, first, we should start thinking up an excuse for your parents," Kazuha said as she helped Heiji down the pavement. "If they find out that you went to practice Kendo without permission and got hurt, they will kill you! I have an idea; tell them you accidentally fell down on the street."

"I'm not that clumsy," Heiji retorted, walking a little unsteadily. His stomach was still killing him. "If we just keep our mouths shut, they will never know. It's not like Otou-san will be around anyway---he's in Kyoto managing something."

"Your okaa-san is a Kendo mistress, she can kill you," Kazuha retorted.

"Oh yeah." Heiji scratched his head. He glanced at Kazuha. Her face was quite near to him, though looking ahead. The fact that she was helping him by having his arm around her shoulders and half-carried him, it made him blush all of a sudden.

"What is it?" Kazuha suddenly turned to him, raising an eyebrow. "Something on my face?"

"Huh? Oh, err, nothing," Heiji said quickly, looking away. _Why is my heart pounding all of a sudden?_ he thought in surprise. _Come on, she didn't mean it...did she?_

"I heard a lot about that friend of yours," Kazuha suddenly spoke up.

"What friend?" Heiji asked.

"Kudo, of course! When you were in hospital, I've been talking to Ran-chan---she's very nice, you know. From the sound of it, Kudo seems like a great guy!"

"Of course he is," Heiji said as-a-matter-of-factly. "After all, they say I'm like Kudo, and Kudo's like me."

"Ran said he's extremely clever and can crack any cases in minutes even," Kazuha continued, not paying attention him. "She told me lots of the cases he solved, and they were all amazing! Kudo Shinichi is the best detective in Japan!" she said gleefully.

Heiji jerked slightly. "_Oh yeah?_" he said with a forced smile. "Where did you get that idea?"

"Ran told me how he solved so many cases, and even the time when you first went there," Kazuha replied gleefully. "It's amazing from the way he solved it!"

"_Really?_" Kazuha didn't notice that she was getting on Heiji's nerve. Heiji would have lost it if someone did not attract their attention in front.

"Hattori-kun! Tohyama-chan!" A boy their age waved at them cheerfully.

"Shunji-kun?" Kazuha exclaimed in surprise as she and Heiji went up to him. "What are you doing here? You haven't been in school for a week now!"

Shunji Eisuke laughed. "Gomen, I've been very busy working for my father. You know, he's in the hospital from the accident last week, and my mother died when I was little, so if I want to earn some income for the family, I have to do something. This is my father's café." He gestured at a little coffee shop in front of him. Then he noticed that Heiji was leaning on Kazuha for support. "What happened to you, Hattori-kun?"

"I was shot three days ago in here," Heiji replied, pointing at his stomach. "Isn't it cool?"

"COOL?! Idiot, you could have been killed!" Kazuha snapped, letting go of him. "Especially after that Kendo mishap!"

"Hey, it doesn't hurt anymore!" Heiji exclaimed, delighted as he took a few strides around. "And you said I would have die---I'm perfectly fine and dead lucky," he snickered as Kazuha glared at him.

"Cool! So you want to come in and have a cup of coffee or something?" Shunji asked, gesturing into the shop.

"Sure," Heiji accepted.

The trio was about to head into the café, when suddenly, the door of video shop next to the café flew open. They turned to see a person stumbling out, grasping his heart for some reason. He tripped at the curb and fell onto the busy road. They were shocked.

"_Uso!_"

It was too late. A truck came by suddenly, and it didn't stop in time. The front wheel crushed the man's head, causing a most gruesome and horrible death. Blood was everywhere when the truck screeched to a halt. The next thing Heiji heard was Kazuha's horrified scream.


	3. File 3 Suspects

**File 3 – Suspects**

"The victim's name was Hirata Kana, twenty-two years old, an undergraduate, according to the wallet he was carrying," Officer Otaki declared, standing over the body that was left on the street. The crime laboratory workers were taking photographs and examining the body. "He fell on the street suddenly and a truck drove over it, crushing his head...

"This is a very gruesome murder..." Otaki continued, wincing. "And the person who witnessed it---"

"---is me!" Heiji announced cheerfully. "Konnichiwa, Otaki-san!"

"H-Hei-chan?!" Otaki exclaimed in astonishment, looking around at him. He noticed Kazuha and Shunji, who were standing far away from where he was. "Kazuha-chan is here too! You're out of the hospital already? How are you?"

"I'm fine," Heiji replied. "It's not like a shot can kill me."

"But---" Otaki was about to say something, but Heiji cut him off.

"No time for chitchatting now, we have to solve this case," Heiji said, walking over to the body. "First of all, we saw this man coming out from that video store, grabbing his heart or something. And then he fell down here." He pointed at the body. "The truck came by seconds later and crushed his head."

"Who drove this truck?" Officer Otaki asked.

A man in his mid-thirties and wearing a cap came up, looking sick and shaken. "M-m-me, Officer...I-I didn't know, I d-didn't mean it! He suddenly appeared out of nowhere and---and---" He was obviously too wimpy to purposely drive over someone.

Heiji looked around and noticed a lab worker sealing something. "Hey, are those bloody skull pieces?" he asked loudly with interest.

"HEIJI, YOU DISGUSTING MORON! WHY DO YOU HAVE TO SAY THAT SO LOUDLY?!" Kazuha screamed, looking green.

Heiji looked at Kazuha with narrowed eyes. "If you can't take the scene, turn around or something then."

Kazuha bit her lip. Then she turned to Shunji. "I want a drink---a strong drink." And, pulling Shunji by the arm, she stormed into the café.

"Officer Otaki, there's something strange about this body!" called the man who was examining the remains.

Otaki strolled over. "What is it?"

"It's strange, because there is a bullet hole in the body of the victim, right on the heart," the man said, writing on his notepad. "It's not an accident---he was murdered by someone."

"What?!" Both Heiji and Otaki were surprised. Otaki turned to Heiji. "You were here, right, Hei-chan? What really happened?"

"We saw this man stumbling out of that shop, holding his heart," Heiji replied, pointing at the video shop. "He was probably shot in the shop---but we didn't hear any gun fire. The murderer must have used a silenced gun."

"The video shop, is it? Men---"

But before Otaki had even given any order, Heiji had already run into the shop. Just when he entered, he saw a flight of spiral staircase at the end, and two persons were emerging from it. "Hello," the lady in front greeted with a smile. "See any video you want?"

"Ma'am, are you aware that a murder had occurred right here in this shop?" Heiji asked.

She gasped. "A murder?"

By that time, Otaki had come up and heard them. "Hei-chan, leave the questioning to me, please," he hissed. He cleared his throat. "Ma'am, I'm Officer Otaki from Osaka Police Department. A man was run over by a truck outside your shop, but we found out that he was shot first in here. Do you know who Hirata Kana is?"

The girl behind the lady gasped. "Not Kana-kun! Why?"

As Otaki raised an eyebrow, the lady quickly bowed. "I'm so sorry, I haven't introduced myself...I'm Sayuki Fuyuko, and this is my daughter, Megumi. I own this video shop. Hirata Kana was my daughter's boyfriend and had been working here for a while."

"Do you mind if we make a search of this place?" Otaki asked as the officers started to split up behind him. Sayuki shook her head. "Now, where were you an hour ago till now?"

"I was upstairs, doing some chores," Sayuki replied. "Megumi was with me too, although she came down once to collect something not long ago."

"Only for some video tapes, Okaa-san," Megumi quickly said.

While Otaki questioned them, Heiji snooped around. He saw a door ajar at the back of the shop. After making sure that no one was paying attention to him, he pushed open the door and slipped in. He found himself in a dusty dimly-lit storeroom filled with video tapes on racks. There was another door on the other side of the room, hanging open.

_Seems like the murderer escaped through here,_ he thought, opening it. It was an alleyway behind the shop. The ground was muddy from the rain last night, but there was no footprint. Heiji narrowed his eyes. _Odd...it's like he disappeared. I was outside the whole time before the police even appeared, but I didn't see anyone coming out of the shop again, and there was no one in the shop either. Unless they went up to the first floor, of course..._

Suddenly, he heard angry shouts in front. Curious, Heiji hurried back to see what was going on.

Back in the shop, two men had arrived, one looking very angry. Otaki was trying to calm the situation but it turned out to be useless.

"You've got to be kidding me, right?" the angry one roared. He was in his thirties and big-sized. "I let my brother work here and this is what happened! What kind of place are you running?!"

"Please, Hirata-san, we don't know why this happened," Sayuki said helplessly. "The police are investigating---"

"Who cares whether the police are investigating? One of you must have killed him! I should have never let him date your daughter!"

"It is not my will to have my daughter dating him too, but we have no reason to murder him!"

"Oh, you do! I know everything! You don't like my brother dating your daughter, and you---you had a fight with him not long ago, I know!" Hirata accused, pointing at Megumi.

"That was a silly fight, we're already back together!" Megumi wailed, frightened.

"Shirai, I think that's enough, please don't jump to conclusion," said the second man, looking scared.

"I'm not jumping to conclusion, Tohaku! Shut your mouth!"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Otaki bellowed, feeling immensely frustrated. The quarrel finally stopped. "Now, please, cooperate with me. Who are you and what are your relations with the victim?"

"G-Gomen nasai...I'm Matsudo Tohaku, the victim's cousin, and this is Hirata Shirai, the victim's brother," the nervous man introduced. "We were just passing by and noticed the commotion, and---"

"Passing by?" Heiji interrupted. Otaki glanced at him in slight irritation.

Matsudo raised an eyebrow, noticing him for the first time. Heiji narrowed his eyes at him, making him sweat. "Er, yes..."

"What, I saw you lurking around outside the shop," Hirata retorted. "I came here to look for Kana, but who knew he was murdered, and it's your fault!" He glared at Sayuki and Megumi.

"Now, now..." While Otaki tried to calm the situation again, Heiji wandered away. He stood facing the front door, watching the officers checking the site. The door was wide open. Just then, a thought came to him. He walked over to the door and without waiting for the officer to say anything, he swung it forward. It couldn't open out---just like any other.

_That's strange...I don't reckon a guy who got shot would even be able to open the door and stumble out. Unless the door was open---but we heard it. Then someone opened it for him...why let everyone see what happened though?_ he thought as he walked away from the door. _Hmm?_ He could smell gun powder. He stopped, looking at the door from where he was. He raised a hand as an improvised gun.

_The murderer should be around here..._He looked down at the floor and noticed shuffling marks. He noted that it started at least two feet from the door. _Must be the victim's..._

After searching around some more, he walked back to Otaki in disappointment. There were not enough clues at the scene, unfortunately. He came up just in time to hear Matsudo saying to Sayuki and Megumi, "You know, this murder is going to give everyone bad impression on you and this shop. Do you want to stay at my place while the case is cleared up?"

"No!" Hirata objected instantly, still red in fury. "You are not bringing these murderers home! I don't care what you think, Tohaku, but they're not coming! Good riddance for them anyway, because once this shop is closed, I'll demolish it and build a better place this lousy shop." He snickered.

"You can't do that!" Sayuki exclaimed angrily. "This shop belongs to us!"

"But the property belongs to me! I'm a real estate agent, don't forget! I'm a very busy man now, Sayuki-san. I suggest you pack soon, or you don't want to be caught in the wreck." Hirata adjusted his tie, sneering.

"Okaa-san, leave him alone," Megumi pleaded, stopping her mother from storming towards Hirata.

"Enough already!" Otaki rubbed his temple in frustration. He had listened enough. "Now please, everyone, stay put until we're done investigating the scene. We're working on it."

Thinking that there wasn't much to do anymore, Heiji started to leave. He did notice Matsudo holding Megumi's hand and leading her off the stairs.


	4. File 4 Case Solved

**File 4 – Case Solved**

Hirata slowly entered the dark storeroom. He looked around. "Where are you? You said you want to see me, don't you?"

Then he heard the door behind him closing, and it was all pitch black. A flashlight was shone on him, blinding him temporarily. "Hey, what's going on? W-what are you trying to---" His eyes widened when he saw the glint from a knife.

---

He slipped out of the shop and headed to the café instead. Inside, he found Kazuha at the counter, sipping a cup of coffee. Kazuha looked up, and quickly rushed to him. "Heiji! Are you okay?"

"Of course I'm okay," Heiji replied. "Where's Shunji?"

"He's in the storeroom. How did the case go?"

"Not really good, I'm afraid. There weren't many clues left behind, so it's going to be a hard time solving it."

"Have you called Kudo-kun and see if he can help?"

"Good idea!" Heiji agreed as he took out his cell phone and began to dial.

"Cool! Kudo-kun's head is the greatest!" Kazuha said excitedly.

Heiji's vein throbbed when someone answered on the other end of the phone line. "Hello? Hello? Who's there?"

"_I won't lose to you, greatest head Kudo,_" Heiji said through his teeth with a forced smile. With that, he hung up.

---

On the other line, Edogawa Conan looked at his earring phone in confusion with a sweat drop. _What's that guy up to now?_

---

"Hey, why did you do that?" Kazuha asked, seeing Heiji hanging up.

"Shut up. I'll go look for Shunji."

Kazuha watched Heiji move to the storeroom, feeling slightly annoyed. _He didn't even realize how worried I was...who cares for that idiot anyway?_ She sat back down and poured some coffee into her cup.

"Hello, Shunji," Heiji greeted as he entered the dimly-lit storeroom.

Shunji looked up from his cleaning. "Oh, hi, Hattori. How was the case? I didn't know you're so devoted to detective work until Tohyama-chan told me." He had an amused glint in his eyes, but Heiji didn't notice.

"Considering how little clues that are, not really good. I need more to figure it out. Hey...this place looks like the one in the video shop!" Heiji exclaimed, looking around him.

"Yeah, the whole line of shops are built in the same structure," Shunji explained as Heiji walked over to the back door and peered out of it. "It's really old, but good. Hey, you know you could have a disappearing act with that?" he asked as he walked over to Heiji.

Heiji looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"It's a really neat structure that allows you to sneak out from here without anyone knowing where you've gone," Shunji explained, opening the door wider, "especially when the soil here is soft. Look." He pointed upwards, and Heiji noticed a small landing jutting out above them, stretching towards the last corner. He immediately understood.

Shunji jumped and grasped the landing with his hands, hanging there. "If you have enough energy, you can just make your way to the corner---" He started moving his hands, quickly heading towards the corner. Then he jumped and disappeared around it. Heiji waited until he saw Shunji coming into the storeroom from the front, grinning. "See? It's perfect! That's how I can sneak out too."

Just then, it came to Heiji. _Of course, all the buildings have the same structure, and that means---_ He glanced up to where the video shop was, and smiled. _So that's how the murderer could get out. But I mustn't jump to conclusion just yet---_

A second scream filled the air---and it came from the video shop. On the alert once more, Heiji turned around and headed out. He did not even glanced at Kazuha, who stood up and was about to ask him a question. When he was outside, he saw Otaki and some police officers running into the shop. Heiji followed.

Sayuki was standing at the storeroom doorway, frozen in shock. Otaki quickly moved her away and went into the storeroom. Heiji peered over Otaki's shoulder.

Hirata Shirai was dead on the floor, feet facing them, and a knife stabbed straight in the heart. His hand grasped what seemed like a piece of torn brown cloth.

---

"I-I don't understand," Sayuki sobbed twenty minutes later, as the police started to move Hirata's body away. "H-how could he have---why is he---"

"Okaa-san," Megumi whispered pitifully, an arm around her mother's shoulders and comforting her. Matsudo stood by them, staring at the corpse.

"The only evidence we have now is this, though we don't' know where it comes from," Otaki said, lifting the cloth he had taken from the victim's hand. Heiji suddenly took it from him, examining it. Annoyed, Otaki snatched it back and turned back to the suspects. "All of you are wearing brown..."

"But our clothes aren't torn!" Megumi exclaimed.

Otaki rubbed his temple. "Where were you since we left ten minutes ago?" he asked them.

"Okaa-san went upstairs to rest, and I was behind there tidying some things up," Megumi replied, pointing at the counter. "I didn't know anything was going on, I was hidden behind the counter all the time."

"I-I was hanging around the counter," Matsudo stammered. "I really don't know anything else...besides, the storeroom is blocked by the shelves."

"Yes...but the murderer could be the same person. There's a possibility that the murderer is among the three of you," Otaki said sternly.

"Well, it couldn't be me, because I was outside the whole time during the first murder," Matsudo said with an anxious laugh. _Not the whole time...I didn't see him until he came in,_ Heiji thought suspiciously. "...and it certainly isn't Megumi, right?"

"Hmm, I noticed that the stairway is blocked by the shelves too..." Otaki murmured. He glanced at Sayuki.

"Y-you think I'm the murderer?" Sayuki shrieked, noticing him.

"No, ma'am, but it's just a hunch. We do not know the real murderer until we investigate further..."

Heiji wandered to the front door once more, thinking. He could not find any clue or evidence---and it frustrated him the most, but he would not give up. He examined the door knob half-heartedly. That was when he noticed a brown string tied securely around it. He yanked it off and examined it. It was broken at one end.

_So, this is the automatic door-opening magic trick,_ Heiji thought. _And it's just that simple. But it doesn't mean anything..._

_Wait a second...why didn't I think of that?_ he thought suddenly, looking around. He narrowed his eyes. _That person must be the murderer...but I need proof...without it, I can't accuse him._

He stared at the rack of videos, thinking. Just then, he noticed something. One video was sticking out a little more from the rest. He took hold of it---and he felt it. _It's here! Okay, I found it...but it's not enough. Now what? Darn it...I hate this kind of normal murder. Why isn't there special planning or something? It's easier to crack this way..._

_"Kudo Shinichi is the best detective in Japan! He solved so many cases!"_ Kazuha's voice came out of nowhere. Heiji's competitive spirit fell in again. _I won't lose!_

Heiji scratched his head in frustration, walking back to the storeroom. He stood just inside it, scanning the surrounding. He noticed something on the floor, and bent down to see what it was. It was a longer brown string---and one of its ends was broken too.

"Come on, Megumi, you can stay with me for a while," he heard Matsudo saying behind him. He turned to watch. Megumi was nodding, taking Matsudo's hand. _Hmm?_ Heiji frowned. _Matsudo's jacket looks different...oh!_ He struck up a smile. _That's easy. Now all I have to do is lure him into a trap..._

---

The police started to leave. When everyone was outside, a person emerged in the shop, looking around. He rushed to a rack and slid the video case that was sticking out. He looked into it---and was shocked to find a note in it.

_I have what you're looking for. Meet me in the storeroom if you want it._

Tossing down the case, the person ran to the storeroom. He slipped in and squinted, trying to see in the darkness.

Suddenly, the light came on. "Looking for this..." Heiji emerged from behind a cupboard, holding a case in his hand and smiling, "...Matsudo Tohaku?"

Matsudo looked shocked. "H-how do you know---"

"If there wasn't too much happening here, I wouldn't have suspected you. You have been holding a big sign saying that you're the murderer who killed the Hirata brothers," Heiji said, taking a couple of steps forward.

Matsudo laughed nervously. "What are you talking about? How could I murder my cousins?"

"First of all, you shot Hirata Kana in front of the shop with a silenced gun," Heiji began. "That is simple. When he started to stumble backward, you pulled open the door with a string so that he fell out. When the string broke, it closed the door quickly so no one could see you. You hid the gun and escaped through the back door."

"But the alley way is muddy and there's no footprint!"

"That's because you used a disappearing act. There's a landing above the door at the back where you can grab on and move to the corner without even leaving any footprints. You probably hid there for a while, that's why I didn't see you coming. Secondly, Hirata Shirai's case---it's easy to lure him here and kill him. Before that, you must have had a rough fight with him and he tore your clothes..."

"Wait, my clothes aren't torn, look!" Matsudo retorted, gesturing at himself.

"It's your jacket. I bet you can wear it inside out without anyone noticing, aren't I right?"

"But it's not torn!"

"It is. That cloth is not just an ordinary cloth---it's a part of the pocket. I bet if you turn that jacket inside out, we'll find a pocket missing. This gun has your fingerprint, I know it."

"Who---who are you?!" Matsudo demanded.

Heiji smiled. "Hattori Heiji---meitantei."


	5. File 5 Cleverest Tantei in Osaka

**File 5 – Cleverest Tantei in Osaka**

Kazuha started, almost spilling her coffee. Shunji looked up at her. "Dou shita no, Tohyama-chan? What's wrong?" he asked.

Kazuha shook her head. "Nothing..." But of course, she had lied. She had suddenly gotten the feeling that something was wrong, and she didn't like that feeling. She got up. "Shunji-kun, I'm going to find Heiji. Thanks for the coffee!" She grabbed her school bag and ran out.

Shunji sighed. He turned and started. He looked at the wobbling tower of cups that were on the counter with a sweat drop. _How many cups of coffee did she have anyway...?_

---

Matsudo looked at Heiji in disbelief. "Meitantei? Wait! Hattori Heiji---weren't you in the finals of the Kendo tournament last year?"

"The only one," Heiji replied. "Admit it, you can't hide."

Matsudo started to laugh. "Yes, I can't hide...but I can make sure you won't tell it to anyone!" He took out a knife and charged towards Heiji.

Heiji dodged, just barely missing him. He was grinning as he did. "Hey, hey...you're trying to fight with a Kendo master, you know that?" He hopped onto a stack of crates as Matsudo tried to stab him.

Just then, he felt a slight sharp pain in his stomach. He winced. _Nani---?!_

Suddenly, Matsudo knocked down the crates. Heiji quickly jumped off before he fell with them. He winced once more as he landed safely on the ground.

_Oh, come on! Don't tell me it's getting worse!_

"You're too slow!" Matsudo shouted, charging once more.

Heiji quickly avoided the murderer's wild swings of his knife, at the same time keeping a firm grip on the gun. Thinking quickly, he slammed into the rack, knocking down some video tapes over Matsudo. He took this opportunity to run for the door that led back to the shop.

The knife shot out from nowhere and hit the door where Heiji's hand had been a second ago. He stumbled back in surprise. The knife wobbled at its position.

"You're not going anywhere until I've killed you properly!" Matsudo snarled behind him.

He pounced for Heiji, but he sprang away just in time. While Matsudo fell on the ground in an effortless catch, Heiji started for the back door. He grasped the handle---and it would not budge. "DARN!" he cursed, kicking the door but to no avail.

Then, he was grabbed by the back of his collar and thrown towards the rack. His body slammed against it, and video tapes started to shower over him. He lost grip of the gun. He groaned, feeling pain all over his body---but they did not hurt as much as his stomach. He peeked down and saw blood on his uniform. The wound was getting worse. His mind was subconsciously aware of his surrounding, and he could not move.

"Not so tough now, are you?" Matsudo remarked with an evil grin, towering over Heiji. He kicked the boy hard, causing him to yelp in pain. In the blurry vision, Heiji could see the murderer picking up the gun. There was a click. "I feel sorry for you---really, I do. You're so young...but you have to pay the price for poking your nose into other's business."

Trying to resist the pain, Heiji dragged himself up forward a little. "Y-you won't...get away...with this," he panted. "Someone...will get the truth out...eventually..."

Matsudo laughed. "Oh, I've already got away with it. I'll see you in hell, meitantei-san..." His finger slowly began to press down on the trigger.

Suddenly, the door slammed open. "Heiji---" Kazuha froze at the doorway when she saw the gun in Matsudo's hand.

"Idiot!" Heiji exclaimed. "Get out of here, Kazuha!"

But Kazuha was rooted to the spot. Matsudo suppressed an evil grin. "Looks like I have another person to kill tonight."

"Leave her alone, she does not have anything to do with this!" Heiji growled, still trying desperately to get up.

"Oh, but I think she does." Matsudo pointed the gun at Kazuha. "I'll deal with you first..."

Kazuha's eyes widened.

Just then, Heiji pounced on Matsudo's back, knocking him down. With an angry yell, Matsudo threw Heiji off him. He fired at the boy, and the bullet struck Heiji's leg. "Aaaargh!" Heiji cried in pain, grasping around the wound. Kazuha gasped. "Heiji!"

"You've meddled enough, Hattori," Matsudo growled, aiming once more. "Now you die!"

_Clunk!_

Matsudo's eyes rolled to the back of his head before he collapsed into unconsciousness with a big lump on his head. Kazuha was standing behind him with her bag above her, panting. Heiji smiled weakly at her. "G-good hit." He cringed, grasping both his leg and stomach.

Noticing this, Kazuha immediately rushed over in panic. "Heiji! Are you okay?"

Heiji managed another wan smile. "Never---better. Aik..." His face was getting pale.

"Hang in there, Heiji, I'll call the hospital!" Kazuha told him, fumbling for her cell phone frantically. But just as she was dialing, she saw Heiji losing consciousness. "Heiji!" she shrieked, shaking him lightly. "Don't scare me, Heiji, wake up! HEIJI!"

---

Mouri Ran burst through the doors, running down the hospital corridor quickly. Conan was following behind her. They halted to find Kazuha sitting outside a ward. Kazuha looked up, and immediately sprang up. "Ran-chan, thanks for coming!" she shrieked, wiping her tears away before hugging her Tokyo-jin friend. "I'm so sorry for all the trouble, I-I just don't know w-what to do..."

"It's okay," Ran comforted her. "I won't let my friend down. How's Heiji?"

Kazuha shook her head, sniffling. "I don't know. He had finished an operation three hours ago, but he hadn't woken up yet. The doctor's still seeing him...it's all my fault! What if---what if Heiji---"

While Ran tried to comfort Kazuha, Conan tried to peer through the glass into the ward. He managed to spot a doctor, a nurse, and a bed that Heiji was supposedly in. He couldn't see Heiji though---the doctor was blocking him. He found himself hoping that his friend was all right.

Just then, the doctor emerged out of the room with the nurse. "You can see him now, but please don't stay for too long," he told them solemnly. Kazuha didn't like the tone in the doctor's voice---she could be wrong, but she could not think at that moment.

"O-okay. Arigatou gozaimasu," she murmured as the doctor and nurse left them alone. She looked at Ran, who nodded her head. Biting her lip, Kazuha turned the knob with a trembling hand and entered the ward.

It was rather dark inside. The heart monitor was the only sound that could be heard in the quiet room, although quite weak. Heiji was on the bed, his eyes closed, and his face quite pale. Kazuha didn't like the look. She stood by the bed, leaning close to him. "H-Heiji?" she whispered.

Heiji did not stir. Kazuha was close to tears. "Heiji, c-can you hear me? Heiji?" She clenched her jaw when she got no response. "Heiji, please don't die!" she cried, tears rolling down her face as she hugged her childhood friend.

"AAAAAARGH, IDIOT! GET OFF ME!"

Kazuha jumped. Heiji had suddenly got up and screamed at her, his eyes glaring and looking no worse. Ran and Conan both had sweat drops as the heart monitor went wild before going normal. Heiji grasped his stomach, grimacing. "Owww..."

"Y-you're not dead?" Kazuha stuttered.

"Are you cursing me? Of course I'm not!" Heiji snapped. "Only stupid girls like you think stupid stuffs!"

Kazuha's vein throbbed. "Oh, so I'm stupid, isn't it?" she retorted. "I guess if I punch your stomach, you'll still live!"

She made a motion of punching Heiji's stomach, startling him. "Y-you wouldn't dare! Okay, okay, fine! But for the price of it, I say you owe me a month's worth of lunch for getting me shot again."

"Hey!"

Ran giggled as the two continued their fight. "Definitely a natural pair!"

Conan laughed awkwardly with a sweat drop. _He has nine lives, that Hattori..._

"Oh, shut up, Heiji," Kazuha finally said, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "The cleverest tantei in Osaka should be getting his rest."

Heiji lit up. "Cl-cleverest tantei in Osaka?" he blurted almost a little too happily.

"Of course! You solved the murder cases not very long ago and the police arrested the murderer already. You're definitely the greatest!" Kazuha said brightly with a smile.

Heiji blushed. While Kazuha turned to talk to Ran, he waved Conan over. "Hear that, Kudo? I'm the cleverest tantei in Osaka, and I definitely haven't lost to you yet!" he whispered gleefully. Conan could only give him a confused look that seemed to say, 'What?'

**END**

**Author's Note**: Yup, short story XD After all, these murder cases don't last for very long like any other, so there! Thanks for reading and I hope you had enjoyed it!


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